BY ANCHAL VOHRA — foreignpolicy.com — Beirut’s Little China restaurant is the city’s most prominent establishment that serves authentic Chinese food, and it’s a regular gathering place for people of Chinese origin. It also serves as a symbol of China’s marginal role in Lebanese life more generally. If Hassan Nasrallah, the chief of Hezbollah, has his way, that may soon change. Nasrallah recently declared in a televised speech that Lebanon must “look east” to China for its salvation at its present time of crisis. The implication was clear: Lebanon should not look to the International Monetary Fund. His Lebanese audience was left befuddled. The extent of crisis was evident—the country’s economy has nosedived, to calamitous effect, in recent weeks—but Lebanon, including some of its most reactionary conservatives, has always understood itself as an outpost of Western values and influence in the Middle East. But Nasrallah is not alone among Lebanese policymakers in believing the country may soon have no choice but to enter China’s political and economic orbit. If that happens, political analysts say, it could mark a new and uncertain chapter in the country’s history.

Lebanon’s economy is in shambles, threatening to join Zimbabwe or Venezuela as one of the world’s terminal economic disasters. Since October 2019, the Lebanese pound has lost 80 percent of its value and plummeted from its fixed exchange rate of 1,500 to the U.S. dollar to 8,000 last week on the black market. Salaries earned in the local currency have turned worthless as prices of basic commodities have tripled. Rises in food prices (including for bread) have hit the middle and lower classes especially hard, and electricity cuts have become regular occurrences. Some Lebanese have started resorting to barter, while the young and unemployed are increasingly opting for desperate measures to make a living. A 24-year-old graduate recently walked from shop to shop in a downtown Beirut market popular with expatriates to sell freshly squeezed orange juice. “Hi, will you support me, please,” he asked everyone plaintively. But Lebanon’s ruling elite continue to drag their feet on political and economic reforms meant to halt corruption and restructure indebted banks, measures necessary to procure a $10 billion bailout from the IMF. Two European diplomats told Foreign Policy that division between Lebanese political factions is the reason the IMF loan hasn’t yet come through. Last week, Alain Bifani, one of Lebanon’s top negotiators with the IMF, resigned from his senior position at the finance ministry and was quoted as saying he had reached a “dead end” with the political and financial elite. He said those with vested interests were obstructing the path to change, because any bailout envisioned a haircut of $3 billion on accounts held by the country’s most wealthy. Millions of Lebanese have been braving a de facto haircut since banks imposed capital controls in mid-November 2019 and refused to let them withdraw their money. A few days after Bifani’s resignation, talks with the IMF were suspended entirely.

by middleeasteye.net — Lebanon Prime Minister Hassan Diab is suing the cash-strapped American University of Beirut (AUB) for over $1m, according to reports in the Gulf media. Before becoming prime minister in January, Diab was an engineering professor at AUB and served as its vice president for regional external programmes. Two senior AUB officials told Saudi Arabia’s Al Arabiya English that Diab is claiming that he did not resign from his position and is asking for retirement funds and severance pay for his contract that expires in 2025. Al Arabiya reported that two other sources with knowledge of the matter said Diab is also seeking compensation for delays to his payment, and is asking for more than $1m in the lawsuit.

Shortly after Diab was appointed as premier, he reportedly failed to respond to AUB as to whether he wanted to be placed on leave without pay or resign from his vice president role. Under AUB policies, a member of staff cannot hold a full-time faculty position while serving in office, although the university offers an option of one-year unpaid leave, which can be extended for two years. Diab reportedly continued to be paid his salary until his government received a vote of confidence from Lebanon’s parliament in February, despite not carrying out his duties at the university.

By NAJIA HOUSSARI — arabnews.com — BEIRUT: Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, commander of the US Central Command (USCENTCOM), has stressed the importance of the strong partnership between the US and the Lebanese Armed Forces. He reaffirmed the importance of preserving Lebanon’s security, stability, and sovereignty, and underscored the importance of the strong partnership between the US and Lebanese militaries. Gen. McKenzie arrived in Beirut amid protests against this visit organized by supporters of Hezbollah on the road leading to Rafic Hariri International Airport, while Lebanese troops took extreme measures to prevent protesters from approaching McKenzie’s convoy. The Information Office of the Lebanese Presidency issued a statement noting: “(General) McKenzie met with President Michel Aoun who praised the cooperation between the Lebanese and US armies in matters of training and armament, and hoped to further develop the military cooperation between Lebanon and the US.”

Aoun pointed out to “the support that the Lebanese Army received from the US Army in 2017 during the battle of Aarsal against Daesh and Al-Nusra,” and added “the (Lebanese) army succeeded in eliminating terrorist dormant cells and continues pursuing them.” The statement noted that McKenzie confirmed the “continuous support of the US military command to the Lebanese army that is defending Lebanon’s independence and sovereignty at all levels including combat and continuous high-level training.” Gen. McKenzie was accompanied by USCENTCOM officials and officers, as well as the US Ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea, and US Defense Attaché Robert Meine. The US Embassy in Lebanon said: “The one-day visit to Lebanon also included meetings with senior Lebanese political and defense leaders, including representatives of the Ministry of Defense and the Lebanese Armed Forces, office calls at the US Embassy, and a brief stop at memorials honoring the memory of those who have perished in service to their country.”

 By SARAH EL DEEB — BEIRUT (AP) – A Lebanese businessman serving a five-year sentence in the United States for providing millions of dollars to the militant Hezbollah group arrived Wednesday in Beirut after his early release, local media reported. Kassim Tajideen was sentenced last year in a federal court in Washington for his role in a money laundering conspiracy aimed at evading U.S. sanctions. He was arrested in Morocco and extradited to the U.S. in 2017, where he was charged with laundering money for Hezbollah. A State Department official said the U.S. government had opposed Tajideen’s motion for compassionate release but in the end the court ruled in his favor. Tajideen, who was designated as a terrorist in 2009, would remain on a terrorist list and his assets would remain blocked, the official added. The fact that he is being released early doesn’t diminish the severity of his crime, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations. There was no immediate comment from Lebanese officials on Tajideen’s early release.

Lebanon’s National News Agency reported Tajideen’s arrival. A local Lebanese TV station, LBC, broadcast a video taken with a mobile phone of his arrival at the Beirut airport. He stepped out of a small jet, wearing a face mask as a necessary coronavirus precaution. The video shows a man rushing toward Tajideen, hugging him and stooping down to Tajideen’s feet in celebration of his release. A federal judge in Washington had ordered Tajideen’s release in May. The National, an English language newspaper in the United Arab Emirates, said the 64-year-old Tajideen was granted compassionate release due to health conditions and fears of coronavirus infections in prison. The U.S. Department of Justice had contested the release. Tajideen was accused of conspiring with at least five other people to conduct over $50 million in transactions with U.S. businesses in violation of sanctions barring him from doing business with U.S. nationals and companies because of his support for Hezbollah. Washington has designated the Iran-backed Hezbollah a terrorist group. Tajideen pleaded guilty last December and agreed to forfeit $50 million.

By HUSSAIN ABDUL-HUSSAIN — asiatimes.com — Lebanon is in a state of severe economic stress. The price of almost every good has soared beyond the ability of many citizens. Legions are out of work. Businesses are locked in a dire existential struggle. There is perhaps no more accurate judgment on the state of an economy than the currency market. In this respect, although the Lebanese pound remains officially – fantastically, one might add – pegged at roughly 1,500 to the US dollar, in truth it takes close to 9,000 pounds to exchange for a dollar. That is an 83% devaluation in the market’s faith in the economy. Many Lebanese, however, are unaware that their national crisis is in fact of Lebanon’s own making. Mostly, they blame an American embargo – one that does not really exist. This misplacement of blame blinds the country to the real cause of its malaise: Hezbollah. Except for sanctions imposed by the US Treasury Department’s anti-terrorism arm, the Office of Foreign Assets Control, on a few Lebanese entities and individuals connected to Hezbollah – the self-claimed “party of God” – there is no financial restriction on the state of Lebanon or any of great substance against its institutions, public or private.

But even without being under sanctions, foreign direct investment – usually the engine of economic growth – shies away from Lebanon. Foreign investors are simply unwilling to bring their money into a country that lives in a state of perpetual war, with Hezbollah currently involved in regional entanglements – in Syria, Yemen and Iraq – or threatening to go to war with Israel. When the Friends of Lebanon group convened an international donor conference two years ago that came to be known as Cedre, it pledged a rescue package worth US$11 billion. The only conditions were that Beirut should get its act together and eradicate corruption and privatize state utilities – especially the highly inefficient Electricité du Liban.

by middleeasteye.net — Kareem Chehayeb — Lebanon’s iconic Casino du Liban was once where the richest of the region came to play. Standing on the cliffs above the Mediterranean, 20 kilometres north of Beirut, it has been dubbed as the Monte Carlo of the Middle East. Though much-loved and revered as a monument to Lebanon’s better days, the casino, which is part-owned by the state, could find itself soon out of the public’s hands. Lebanon’s economy is in freefall. The currency has lost some 80 percent of its value in recent months and officials are eyeing ways to raise liquidity, including selling off some of the state’s most prized assets, such as the casino. Like the rest of the country, Casino du Liban is emerging from a coronavirus lockdown. A disinfectant booth greets visitors at the entrance, and men in jumpsuits busy themselves outside, preparing for another round of sanitisation.

Portraits of former Lebanese heads of states and international celebrities in the entrance hall put the casino front and centre of the country and region’s history. Lebanon’s casino has hosted a slew of high-ranking officials and celebrities, including the shahs of Iran, King Abdullah of Jordan, and even Osama bin Laden. It was considered “impressive culturally, but also socially”, Mona Fawaz, professor of urban studies and planning at the American University of Beirut, told MEE. But aside from flaunting social status and enjoying cultural events, it was also a place to do business and “meet important people”, she said. In fact, Fawaz said, business networking at Casino du Liban was integral to commence major development projects in Lebanon, like in Hay El-Sellom, the country’s largest informal settlement just south of Beirut. “Back in the 1950s, [the developer] knew he had to go there to meet important people to get services and other supplies to the neighbourhood,” Fawaz says. “That’s how he met all these important people to bring in asphalt and other things to that neighbourhood.” Nothing of the sort has been possible in recent months, however. Coronavirus forced an 80-day closure, and though scores of mask-wearing men and women can be seen playing the slot machines, the casino’s restaurants are still shut, as are other gaming areas.

by naharnet –– Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi on Sunday called on President Michel Aoun to break what he called the siege that is imposed on Lebanese “legitimacy” and the country’s “free national decision.” In his Sunday Mass sermon, al-Rahi also urged friendly nations to “scramble to rescue Lebanon, the same as they used to do […]

By: Agnes Helou — defensenews.com — BEIRUT — The Lebanese government plans to sell five outdated Air Force Hawker Hunter fighter jets and three Sikorsky S-61 helicopters in an attempt to reallocate the service’s resources, a government source has confirmed to Defense News. “Lebanon has been in negotiations with many suppliers to procure primary training aircraft, on top of which Pakistan might supply Super Mushshak trainers to the Air Force, but the deal hasn’t been sealed yet,” a Lebanese official told Defense News on condition of anonymity. Lebanon has seven aging Hawker Hunters, five of which have been nonoperational since 1990, and the other two out of service since 2011. Repairing them has proven difficult due to a lack of spare parts. Furthermore, the aircraft are equipped with outdated weapons systems that have poor accuracy when compared other technology in service with the Air Force, such as the Super Tucano and its advanced precision kill weapon system. “Based on good management and investment of available equipment, the Air Force developed a plan to replace five Hawker Hunter planes with their spare with two primary training flights. This step also comes in the context of a plan to replace the existing Bulldog aircraft, which are specialized for primary flight training, and which are expected to be stopped from flying in the next five years,” the source said.

However, the Lebanese Air Force will keep two Hawker Hunters (one with double seats and the other with a single seat) with some spare parts in hopes they can be fixed up for future air shows. ormer Commander of the Lebanese Air Force Brig. Gen. Mahmoud Mattar told Defense News that the country’s limited economic resources are behind its decision to sell aircraft. “The scarce economic resources prevent LAF from refurbishing and re-operating the Hawker Hunter fighters and the Sikorsky. Though, the technical capabilities to replace the spare parts and bring Hawker Hunter back to service and particularly for ground-attack missions are available,” Mattar said. The aircraft are expected to be sold in a public bidding this year, the Lebanese source noted. The official added that interested parties will likely be “small companies or private clubs.”

by middleeastmonitor.com — The usually grand Baalbek Music Festival, set among 3,000-year-old Roman ruins in Lebanon, was reduced to just a single concert this year by the COVID-19 pandemic. For maestro Harout Fazlian, however, it was one of the most special of his career. On a stage in the ancient temple of Bacchus, Fazlian conducted […]

Opinion by David Ignatius — washingtonpost.com — A grim new chapter in the Saudi “Game of Thrones” battle for control of the kingdom appears to be underway, as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman prepares corruption and disloyalty charges against his predecessor and onetime rival, former crown prince Mohammed bin Nayef — a man who was once the United States’ champion in the war against Islamist terrorism. This royal family showdown has been building ever since MBS, as he’s known, deposed his predecessor in June 2017. The roots lie even deeper, in the bitter rivalry between supporters of the late King Abdullah, who had championed MBN, as the former crown prince is called, and the courtiers who surrounded his successor, King Salman, and his impulsive son MBS, when the new king assumed power after Abdullah’s death in January 2015.

Saudi and U.S. sources say that MBS’s anti-corruption committee is nearing completion of a detailed investigation of allegations that MBN improperly diverted billions of Saudi riyals through a network of front companies and private accounts while he was running Saudi counterterrorism programs at the Interior Ministry. MBN served there as chief assistant to his father, Prince Nayef, and then succeeded him as minister from 2012 to 2017. An associate of MBN’s said Saudi investigators have demanded that he repay $15 billion they claim he stole, though it isn’t clear how they reached that number. The associate, like some others contacted for this article, requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. MBN’s supporters say these charges are false — and are contradicted by a 2007 royal decree from King Abdullah that authorized all of MBN’s activities and provided for a detailed annual report on his spending. Internal Saudi documents provided by an associate of MBN’s and reviewed by The Post support MBN’s contention that his secret financial activities were approved, at least in broad outlines, by the late king.